Defence Minister: Hungary supports EU defence development

Hungary supports all initiatives boosting the EU’s defence capacity, Defence Minister Tibor Benkő said on Monday in Luxembourg, at the meeting of EU defence and foreign ministers.

Respect of national sovereingty, the joint funding of anti-terrorism operations and stabilisation, and avoiding “duplicate operations” with NATO are priorities in defence cooperation, the defence ministry cited Benkő as saying.

Hungary sees flexibility, transparency and the involvement of third countries as especially important, Benkő said.

Efforts should be coordinated to stop illegal migration, to develop capacity in the Western Balkans and in the fields of counterterrorism and military mobility, he said.

The ministers agreed at the meeting that the EU’s common security and defence policies should be strengthened further, especially to fight against terrorism and illegal migration, the ministry’s statement said.

Source: MTI